From catalog to brick and mortar to online stores… Some retail brands are having a hard time making the transition to an almost completely digital retail landscape. Moreover, create onsite experiences to engage with those consumers that might still prefer the brick and mortar experience for now… #Retail#digitization#experientialmarketing#marketing#howtohttps://www.reuters.com/a

The term ” branding” has become one of those terms that has launched itself into a blackhole of business jargon due to it’s ubiquity and gross overuse. If we had an Apple stock for every time we heard the term branding mis-used we would be, well Steve Wozniak… So let’s start with what a brand IS NOT:

Your logo

Your tagline

Your product

Your service

Although the above do play a key role in shaping your brand, they do not define it. Branding is telling a story, it is the promise of a distinct memorable experience. It’s consistency every time someone contacts your brand, every time they e-mail, every time they contact customer service. It’s how you make your customers feel with their purchase decision and how they connect with your brand story on an ongoing basis.

Developing an authentic brand is about consistency, consistently delivering the right message to the right people to create the right reaction…

What is your brand’s story and how are you telling it? What is your brands voice and personality? What distinguishes your brand from others and why? By 2019 a projected 70% of marketing budgets will be digital in North America. So in a world where buyers are bombarded with content and ads every time they look at their phones, tablets and computers; how do you stand out?

In a time when the phrases “fake news” and ” post-truth” are thrown around so freely, I thought it prudent to share an article written by not only one of the most brilliant marketing minds in the world, but one of my favourite authors; Ryan Holiday. Ryan Holiday’s first book ” Trust Me I’m Lying: Confessions of a Media Manipulator ” was effectively the PR guide/mind behind “fake news”. Former director of marketing for American Apparel, PR strategist for Tucker Max, the contraversial Fratire author; Ryan Holiday’s strategic marketing mind will surely make you question what you read… Enjoy the read!

When you hear or see BMW you think luxury, you think performance. Founded in Munich Bavaria some 102 year ago in 1916. BMW’s original mandate was aircraft engine production, not cars; BMW got into car production in the early 1920″s. The Quandt family have been longterm shareholders with the rest of the company owned by a public float. Producing cars in Germany, Brazil, India, China, South Africa, the UK and US; BMW is one of the worlds largest automobile producers in the world.

Misconception:

Some think the BMW logo is a rendering of a plane propeller due to its aircraft manufacturing origins. However the most accepted meaning is, it is a close up of the Bavarian flag… You decide…

Retail giants such as Walmart, Winners, and Canadian Tire have honed in on consumers need to purchase. Ever wonder why there are items between 2-$10 displayed in the lines to the cash in places like Walmart, Winners, and Canadian Tire? They are there for a reason, the last 5 consumer reports show that 6/10 consumers will purchase items between 2-$10 at the POSL (Point of Sale Location). Item’s such as tea, gum, beet chips, small flash lights and such… Now with tax season upon us, TURBO IMPOT decided to try and capitalize on this consumer behavior, albeit slightly out of the normal parameters. Two questions: Are you guilty of this common consumer behaviour? How successful do you think TURBO IMPOT will be at selling this product in this environment?

Steeped in Irish culture, Guinness is often thought of as the most globally recognized beer.

The Guinness Harp

The harp, the iconic Guinness emblem is based on the famous 14th century harp “O”Neill” or “Brian Boru” (Ireland’s legendary High King. Boru Vodka later formed in his namesake).

Harp is their first non stout beer, and the “Harp” is the emblem of Ireland, albeit with a slightly different design due to trade marking. Making the harp not only an icon for this creamy stout but an icon for Ireland worldwide.

Misconception:

There is a a misconception that the majority of Guinness is brewed at St. James gate.

Although still the largest producer of stout in the world producing upwards of 50 million barrels a year not to mention was originally leased to Arthur Guinness for 9,000 years in 1759. Guinness’s parent company Diageo formerly Grand Metropolitan, is the biggest owner/producer of alcoholic beverages in the world and has breweries and distilleries in 49 countries… That being said, three of the five Guinness breweries are in fact in Africa.; with the largest producer being in Nigeria ( Guinness Nigeria PLC).

Guinness Empire:

Largest producer of stout in the world. Market cap of 4 billion ( as of 2017)